Quattro in Four Seasons @ Palo Alto

2050 University Avenue

East Palo Alto, California 94303

U.S.A.

Tel. 1 (650) 566-1200

Right at the corner of highway 101 and Universerty Avenue in East Palo Alto, the Four Seasons Hotel is in an industrial business center which is full of law firms and high profile institudes. I’ve driven by probably 1000 times though honestly I never paid attention to it. It seemed just one of those business centers, modern solid and distant.

BF RAVED about how great the sea bass was that he had for lunch last Friday. Yes, R~A~V~E~D!!! Big and CAPITALIZED! I was intrigued … OK, drooling over it.. :)~~ So when BF texted me asking if I’d like to meet up there for lunch this Wed, took me 1/100 seconds to say YES. And most importantly, decided to do a review on the eatin’!

Honestly, I would never have imagined there’s a restaurnat inside those buildings. Upon circling, I wandered around and wondered where the restaurant could be especially BF told me they had outdoor seating. It’s a breezy sunny day, still a bit on the cool side and I was not expecting sitting outside .. but where was it?

Four Seasons Hotel is a very nice hotel – from the look of the building, and also from the decorations.

left: Lobby, right: Where I was sitting and waiting.

Here are some pix showing how nice the restaurant was decorated. The sunny bright weather did help setting the mood too! And on top of that, we got the purple vase flower on our table! (Not every table got purple!)

Quattro

Inside Quattro

Looking out from our table, VERY nice outside!

Our table flower inside the purple vase!

So, BF said he was anxious – Murphy’s law says, the fish would be terribly messed up after how much BF raved about how great it was… But the Sea Bass was my purpose being here, so we both ordered the oh-so-famous Grilled Mediterranean Sea Bass. I was in a great mood – a beautiful day right at the start of Spring, the luxury restaurant, the highly anticipated meal, and most of all a wonderful company!

The bread, evoo, and the sun dried tomato paste.

Ahi Tuna Tartar

Ahi Tuna Tartar

Ratings: 3.5 out of 5

The only appetizer we ordered. Not the usual Seared Ahi Tuna but I thought it was close – Oh I came with a very empty stomach!

It was a very nice presentation. The lightly greenish glass plate definitely set the dish as refreshing and spring-y – perfect for this weather, or even when it’s hotter. The tuna was very fresh and the nice chunk size mixed with the spice and onion definitely serviced the palate well. I was told the yellow piece thing-y was made out of a jello-similar process which was a big surprise to me cause it was crunchy and very much like some type of vegetables.

Grilled Mediterranean Sea Bass

Ratings: 4.5 out of 5

Sea Bass? I guess Mediterranean fish comes from a totally different world! It did not taste like the regular fatty sea bass that we ususally had. It’s not as fatty or nor chunky. Instead, it’s very meaty. It TOTALLY reminded me of my favorite fish dish back in Taiwan my Mom made for me when I was young – though I can’t even remember the name of the fish in Chinese! I remember Mom would usually fried the fish wish a little oil – the whole fish. It wasn’t big probably 6 inches long. I was so good eating the whole fish out of the bone even my Mom started asking if I was a cat… 😀 Anyway, this one was grilled instead but had very much the same texture. Oh yeah, the texture – meaty but very tender, buttery but not greasy. The meat melted right into your mouth, but you could also tell that the fish had been exercising.. (read: lean and structured) I suspected it was only lightly salted without much of other spice because the flavor was just so pure – only the best can be served this fresh. It’s about back to the basic, the simplicity. And you get to know the fish and just the fish without other noises. The flavor, the juice and the meat orchestrated a wholesome masterpiece in your mouth, pure! Ooooo SO YUM! And BF confirmed that was as delicious as last time he tried – such a consistent success!

Grilled Mediterranean Sea Bass (before)

Grilled Mediterranean Sea Bass (after)

AND, the grilled cauliflower on the top was also very much delicious! I had never had grilled cauliflower and this definitely brought me another layer of liking it! (Well, BF was not a big fan of cauliflower, so I took over all the cauliflower from his plate!) Under the fish there was the potato in a savory sauce that provided the starch part of the meal. It did taste good although I had set my mind into some dessert later so I skipped most of it. 🙂

Ricotta Cheese Cake

Ratings: 4 out of 5

Yes, dessert! I just had to try A dessert in this lovely restaurant. Usually I like to “talking” about dessert rather than “eating” it. I was very satisfied that I gave it a try. This cheese cake is a lot lighter than the normal cheese cake. I guess the ricotta cheese was to thank for.

Ricotta Cheese Cake

The slightly baked and crusted top was so right to be with the soft style cheese cake. Again, it melted right in my mouth! The regular cheese cake is usually too rich for me. This one was light on both the texture and sweetness. See, I could not wait for the picture to be taken but had to have one bite…. 😛

Berry plate

Tea

Macchiato

We ended the lovely lunch with some berries, tea, and my macchiato (there was some misunderstanding.. I was asking for caramel macchiato but I think the waitress got it “macchiato” instead.. ). Such a luxury lunch! Let’s say.. it’s a success?! 😉

Oh, we found out that BF’s tie REALLY “tied” in with the dish placement in the restaurant! LOL!

The Tie

Little Sichuan @ San Mateo

168 E 4th Ave.
San Mateo, CA 94402

This is a Chinese restaurant, I am Chinese. I’ve been here several times with different types of crowds. It’s a quite famous restaurnat among Chinese people for their “Sichan” style crusine, namely, spicy food. I was always hesitant going to this restaurant with other Chinese friends – for Chinese people going there, they tend aiming for the SPICY dishes. And, at times those food do not agree with my stomach.

This time it’s a crappy weather day and I just got out of a total 4 hours intensive workshop. Rainny outside and I was all exhausted and sweaty. I was up for some comfort and filling food.

薺菜豆腐羹
Shepherd’s-purse Tofu Soup

Ratings: 3 out of 5

Shepherd's-purse Tofu Soup

Shepherd’s-purse, a type of vegetable that has triangular, purse-like pods with the Latin name Capsella bursa-pastoris. It added a special flavor to this tofu soup. And I enjoyed the color and texture of the vegetable very much. The tofu was very tender and smooth. A bit pork enhanced the whole flavor to the already very savory soup. I am sure the soup had some starch to make it slightly thicker but not too thick. This was a very comforting soup in a rainy and exhausting day like that day.

Pickle Lamb with Clear Noodle

酸菜羊肉冬粉
Pickle Lamb with Clear Noodle

Ratings: 4 out of 5

How should I address this dish? Well.. how about this, everytime I think about this dish my mouth starts watering.. yeah, like right now! The pickle lam is always one of my favorite dishes that is often found in Muslim Chinese restaurants. The pickle is not the typical American pickle. It’s the similar kind of process but using cabbage instead. For some reason I am never fond of the regular pickle but really have this special tooth for the pickle cabbage – in a dish of course. I am normally not a big fan of sour/vinegar food but this one I love <3. I enjoy the special flavor of the lamb with the strong sour savory taste of the pickle cabbage combination. It does have quite strong flavors I have to say – that’s where the clear noodle is highly appreciated. No secret, I am a big fan of noodles. Any kind. Even this one that’s made out of bean starch. It’s very smooth and has the very chewy testure than the regular noodles. My theory is that the noodles are extra flavored because it’s quite thin and easier to absorb the sauce from the dish – it’s a very good compliment to the bold taste of this dish. Last note, this is a GREAT dish to pair rice with… YUM!

PF Chang’s in Palo Alto

900 Stanford Shopping Center
Palo Alto, CA 94304

Not surprising, there we were again. BF just came back from his Japan trip so we decided to meet up at “Our” place. 🙂

It’s a beautiful day and BF got us a window table – the sunshine was so warm I almost forgot it was still Winter. One thing new that we found the menu was updated – slightly anxious wondering if our favorite Chicken Noodle Soup was still in the menu.

Here are the items we ordered:

Buddha's Feast

BUDDHA’S FEAST

Veggies with five-spice tofu served steamed or stir-fried
Ratings: 3.5 out of 5

This is one of the item we ALWAYS order. We like it steamed, extra carrots/tofu/snap peas. The tofu is flavorful although the rest comes with their natural flavor – which is very light. I always enjoy the veggies with their freshest. One veggie dish that BF DOES eat… so I cherish it very much. LOL.

CHANG’S CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP

Chang's Chicken Noodle Soup

Our spicy version is what you wish your mother would have made
Ratings: 4.5 out of 5

I am glad to report that the soup is still on the menu! And it’s as great as I remembered! Please refer to previous post for more detailed information. Definitely this is the kind of soup that satisfies your stomach in one of the cold winter days. It has well rounded spice that gives you enough heat, interests, and flavors. Really, Yum!

GARLIC NOODLES

Garlic + Noodles = Simply divine
Ratings: 4 out of 5

Simply divine, I can not agree more! Well well.. I am a starch sucker – particularly noodles. So believe it or not, I do think it’s challenging to keep in shape – I grew up with buns/noodles/dumplings, Chinese food of course – they are my breakfast, lunch, snack.. or simply, food. This dish resembles the traditional “Cold Noodles” in Taiwan although the sauce is more desirable in my humble opinions. It definitely has a lot of garlic – my love. It’s savory but also has the sweetness to it to balance it out. I know some friends who do not eat any savory dishes with sweetness in.. Well, take your pick, I am satisfied with mine! The only one less star from the ranking is due to the “manufactured” noodles themselves. It’s OK but not great. It’s not saggy but I’d prefer my noodles usually more on the chewy side, just personal taste. It’s a big portion and tastes still good when heated up from left-overs.

Garlic Noodles

The Main Courses

Mahi-Mahi

MAHI-MAHI

Ratings: 3.5 out of 5

This is one of their new dishes. I always like Mahi-Mahi so I wanted to give it a try. It was not disappointing. The white meat of Mahi-Mahi came from the grill, it was well cooked but not mushy. With the tenderness being preserved in the meat the fish was very juicy and well seasoned. I loved the roasted lemon grass strips on the top – for the ascethetic appeal also the enhanced fragrance. It came with cooked rice on the bottom and no side veggies. I think I’d prefer some veggies with similar season and aroma on the side – I should ask next time.

WILD ALASKAN SALMON STEAMED WITH GINGER

Our salmon comes straight from the cold waters of our 49th state

Ginger Salmon

Ratings: __ (waiting for Tig’s input!)

BF’s dish. I think I usually would have a bite or two. I love salmon but I believe my fav is raw! 🙂 Will ask BF to fill in for this one. It looked nice in the presentation though.

Yeah.. I finally remembered to bring the camera for taking the dish pictures – except while eating the soup and wanting to take pictures of the other dishes …. I dropped my camera into my soup. Luckily I don’t think the soup really got inside the camera but the handle strip was soaked… Of course I came home with a chicken-soup smell camera. What can I say? Love the soup so much.

The PF Chang’s in Palo Alto is always our favorite. We’ll be reviewing the one in Fremont really soon. Overall, this one has never let us down!

Clay Oven @ San Mateo

Clay Oven
78 East 3RD Ave
San Mateo, CA 94401

I am usually shy away from Indian food – because it tends to be on the spicy side and my stomach doesn’t always agree with the spiciness. Another reason.. OK, don’t take it the wrong way, but I tend to liking my food in a pretty bright color while I can see each ingredient – Indian food tends to hold a darker brown color to me each bite consists something I am not sure of and it could be too adventurous for me. 😛

But I do agree variety and to try new things. Plus I know BF likes Indian food –   so I was determined to find good eats in this category.

There we decided to try an Indian restaurant in San Mateo – our goal was Bombay Garden although we didn’t seem having the luck finding it. So we landed on Clay Oven – where actually BF has eaten before (not a word he could give from memory about good or bad beforehand though).

Nice clean environment though quite small. This Clay Oven (yes they have other Clay Ovens in SF and other Bay Area places) has decoration on the darker side (yeah, my heart plunged a bit.. wasn’t there a research awhile back saying brighter colors enhance people’s appetite?) with strong spice smell (again, heart plunged a bit deeper). There we sat and decided to try the menu instead of the buffet.

Immediately we got the Papadum – the so famous Indian appetizer – thin like a piece of paper which honestly I loved the texture – I enjoyed the biting part very much. Along side were 3 chutney – mint, hot & sour tamarind, and one that seemed like some tomato stuff. I liked the sweet one (I think it’s the hot & sour tamarind) and BF enjoyed the mint chutney very much.

Papadum & Chutney

For the Entre BF had Chicken Tikka Kabab AND Chicken Do-Piaza. Last time we ordered the Chicken Tikka Kabab and “suffered” pretty severely from the “rubbery dry chicken” meat. BF had to give that another try (honestly it’s bad enough you’d think the chef went out for a break and they had the bus boy doing the dish..) but just for playing safe to have another chicken dish so he wouldn’t get starved like last time. 😛

Chicken Tikka Kabab

Chicken Tikka Kabab

Boneless chicken cubes, marinated in spices and cooked in he clay over a charcoal fire
Ratings: 4 out of 5

I really loved this dish, the chicken was tender and juicy and really tasteful. The veggies that came with were nicely saute but still had the freshness reserved – best of all, they still had the great veggies bright color! 😛 Comparing to the first time’s rubbery experience, I’d say this was such a drastic change (thank God the chef’s back!) and that was such a great dish. I was, though, a bit skeptical wanting to order that again and see if the quality stays.

Chicken Do-Piaza

Chicken Do-Piaza

Chicken cooked with stir fried onion, ginger, garlic, tomato and spices
Ratings: 3 out of 5

The second dish BF ordered to try was not bad… yeah, it did not contain too exciting color for me. 😛 Although again, it wasn’t bad. I liked the slight ginger taste in it. But I felt the combination of the spices did not really stand out – maybe that’s why it got only 3 out of 5 from BF. 🙂

So now may we go into what I ordered? Ahhhh I found my callings this time! I was lucked out, first time I tried this Prawn Goa Curry I was IN LOVE. OH have to mention that I also ordered Garlic Nan with it – that’s a must!

Prawn Goa Curry

King prawns cooked traditional Goanese style with coconut milk and spices
Ratings: 4 out of 5

Garlic Nan

Leavened bread stuffed with fresh garlic
Ratings: 4.5 out of 5

Garlic Nan & Prawns Goa Curry

OK gotta admit that, I LOVE garlic with starch – let it be garlic nan, garlic noodles, garlic bread… YUM!!! Honestly I have no idea what’s considered a good Nan, but I LOVE mine just fine. It’s soft and nicely baked – a bit thinner than a regular pita although I considered them quite similar. And the garlic – you can see their being minced and layered on top – not too much to be over powering but just gave the great taste of garlic. And let me tell you the prawn curry. The taste was divine! I believed it’s the yellow curry and the mix with the coconut. That is always my favorite. I wouldn’t say it’s the “king prawns” though that’s one thing I felt the menu was a bit misleading and I would probably prefer those little guys being cooked a bit less – could be more tender if you ask me. The curry sauce was PERFECT for the garlic nan – layer but no dip! I think the spices and the garlic created such a harmonic combination that’s just what my stomach needed! (Well, I feel hungry just now by thinking about it!)

So say Clay Oven was a success? Oh Ya!

PF Chang’s Chicken Soup

Winter, we often times seek for comfort food. Or to be exact, comfort soup.

We make the killer Mexican chicken soup that we got the recipe from Barefoot Contessa. But sometimes you just love the feeling of no-effort-great-soup. 😉

We go to the PF Chang’s in Stanford shopping mall quite often. We always have our Buddha’s Feast and Seared Ahi Tuna for sure then pair with some other dishes. This time, it was cold, wet and yucky outdoors so we were looking for some hot soup to soothe that stomach of ours.

BF suggested the “Chang’s chicken noodle soup”. With that pepper spicy sign I was worried it might upset my stomach (instead of soothing) so I was a bit skeptical at first. But then I noticed the “noodle” part.. OKAY, anything with noodles in MUST be good, at least worth the try.

AND WE WERE IMPRESSED HOW GREAT IT WAS!!!! Ya, worth every capitalized letter.. 😉

The soup is so flavorful. It has all the “right” ingredients: white meat chicken (BF’s fav), grape tomatoes, shiitake mushrooms, cilantro and onions. It’s definitely Chinese fusion food – I can taste the soy sauce in it but it also contains some rich flavors with different spices. Every sip satisfies every taste bud and comforts every inch of the stomach… Oh, and the noodles are the perfect companion in the soup – for me it is. One word: YUM!

We then also tried the PF Chang’s in Fremont.. although to find out that the soup there was a lot lighter and broth-y… a bit odd that they have the soup differently in different stores.

The rating: 4.5 out of 5

Chang’s Chicken Noodle Soup from PF Chang’s @ Stanford

Chang’s Chicken Noodle Soup from PF Chang’s @ Fremont

Seared Ahi Tuna, Part II

(with Flash)

(No Flash)

PF Chang’s
900 Stanford Shopping Center
Palo Alto, CA 94304
Phone: (650) 330-1782

Wow, I can not believe it’s been almost a month since we did the last review. It’s NOT that we did not eat. It’s just that… well, other things had been in the way.

We decided to pay PF Chang a visit – where we went all the time EXCEPT this last month or so. Compared to our memory the presentation definitely seems being changed. Though.. let’s focus on the current plate since we have rather vague memory how it used to be. 😛

At the first glance the plating is quite similar to Sweet Basil Thai in the previous review. They have both porcelain white plates against the dark wood furniture. It does present a clean, modern and contemporary ambiance to the meal, which I consider very nice.

I have to admit, the presentation of PF Chang having the tuna neatly sliced and the fresh red meat sides placed against the vibrant green marinated salad really pleases the eye. I could see the effort the chef put into the preparation – tossing the salad balancing the leaves and the dressing; lightly brushing the sauce and grilling the surface of the tuna; slicing the meat with precision and tenderness; plating the salad, cucumber and sliced tuna with the sense of art; drizzling with the rich yummy sauce…. then BAM! (oops, this is Emeril Lagasse)! YA..

Quality-wise the tuna in PF Chang is really high grade. You can tell just by looking at the color. The chewy texture of the red meat wraps around your teeth while the freshness of the fish juice touches every taste buds of your tongue. The grilled surface with smoky BBQ flavor has sparse sesame seeds that gives little texture variation surprises here and there. The sauce is on the salty side (compared to the sauce at Sweet Basil Thai that’s on the sweet side) and that definitely brings the flavor to another level with the miso sauce in it (I highly believe so). The richness of the miso paste, faint mustard, soy sauce and/or wasabi sauce orchestrated together has created a more traditional Japanese taste palate for this dish. I like that each piece is equally cut so I get the full tasteful experience from the start to the end.

Do I mention that the salad is also marinated? The taste journey continues through the same type of sauce on the tuna that’s also found in the salad besides the dressing. The crunchiness of the mixed greens refreshes each bite. The cucumber has some light sweetness to it which is nicely done that adds to the tasteful palate of the whole dish.

Yum! And, one final point – there was no “blood water” left on the plate after the fish was finished (compared to the one in Sweet Basil Thai) which again indicated the freshness and professional preparation of the tuna!

（The Remains)

Seared Ahi Tuna, Part I

Sweet Basil Thai Cuisine
Beach Park Blvd, Foster City, CA 94404
(650) 212-5788 1457

We’ve been here, actually many times. We always have our Tom Ka Gai chicken coconut soup, and some other regulars. Seared Ahi Tuna is always one of the regulars that’s on our table!

Sweet Basil Thai Cruisine has very stylish tastes in terms of their table wares – white porcelain geometric shapes in square, oval, diamond. The much modern and contemporary decor is very pleasing to the eye – at least mine. 🙂

The seared Ahi tune comes in a very neat presentation plate. Six pieces on the plate at least this time we took the pix. The inside is pink and tender raw tuna while its outside is seared and then wrapped with black and white sesame. The sesame does add some fragrance to the fish taste, and also the crunchy texture for another layer other than the raw and cooked meat. The are nicely flavored with (nowhere we are good enough to really tell.. :P) teriyaki sauce (the darker one) and possibly mayonnaise mixed with wasabi sauce (the lighter one).

The slightly roasted aroma from the sesame was the first thing reaches me when I approached the tuna piece. The rich flavor teriyaki sauce mixed with the juice from the fish touched my palate while I bit through. The different texture from the crunchiness of the sesame, the slightly crust from the seared edge of the fish, and the soft and chewy characteristics of the meat was a great combination with the hint of spiciness from the wasabi. The milky creamy taste from the mayonnaise (at least it seems to be) helped to have all the flavors joined harmoniously… Ahh..

Last time we found that they had tiny cut on the fish surface – we figured that might be used to help biting through.

My boyfriend always saved the best piece for me – last time the end piece cause he thought I liked the sesame more; and this time a big middle chunk… Yum Yum.

Anyway, they never lasted long on our table that’s for sure. 🙂

Seared Ahi Tuna, Part 0

My boyfriend and I, we both love fish, eating I mean. Not for long we started realizing that we were chasing the more popular appetizer “Seared Ahi Tuna”.

It’s really Asian/Japanese food – partial raw tuna serves the palate for some that crave for sashimi, seared outside rim brings warmth for others that determine temperature in food. It has its own sauce in general so that saves time from creating your own and also avoid dipping (or dripping) since the sauce usually evenly distributed and more on the dense side. It’s really a dish of fusion – Japanese, Chinese, and somewhat Western style.

The most often “activity” for us is to eat.. OK, I mean, having great meals. 🙂 And we pleasingly found out that the “Seared Ahi Tuna” are provided by many restaurants in the Bay Area. Chinese, American, or even Thai. We are so eager finding the best in town – or anywhere we so can reach. So hence we decided to create our own reviews for this lovely dish.

We’ll start from home, and see where we can go!